Targeted Action and Financing the Fight Against Antimicrobial Resistance in Asia 2025

Fund productization and commercialization of later-stage projects FIGURE 9 CASE STUDY 10 Novo Nordisk Foundation, Wellcome and Gates Foundation invest $300 million to tackle climate impacts, infectious diseases and AMR In May 2024, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Wellcome and the Gates Foundation launched a new three-year initiative to support critical scientific R&D for global health, with an emphasis on advancing solutions that are accessible and affordable in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This signals an interest in frugal innovations that could be implemented at scale within regions such as Asia. With a combined fund of $300 million, the initiative seeks to finance solutions that address the health impacts of climate change, infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance (AMR), as well as to build understanding around the interplay between nutrition, immunity, disease and developmental outcomes. In February 2025, the initiative announced the launch of the Gram-Negative Antibiotic Discovery Innovator (Gr-ADI), a $50 million investment focused on combatting AMR. “We need global collaboration and cooperation more than ever to build healthier futures and for society to thrive,” said John-Arne Røttingen, Chief Executive Office of Wellcome. Sources: See endnote.152 Discovery researchPre-clinical Clinical phase 1 Clinical phase 2 Clinical phase 3Regulatory approvalPost-approval (including distribution)Biomarker discoveryTranslation (proof-of-concept, proof-of-value)Productization – prototypePilot manufacturing and functional verificationClinical validation (trials)Regulatory approvalMarket adoption and distribution Diagnostics development Therapeutics developmentInnoVet-AMR Note: Public and research funding tends to be concentrated around early discovery and prototyping; more capital is needed to fund later-stage development, to ensure innovative products are brought to market and made available for all. Source: Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP). Targeted Action and Financing the Fight Against Antimicrobial Resistance in Asia 33